One of a Kind
by Golden Oak and Kestrel Flight
Summary: It's 2014. The Cosmic Skull has been defeated, but the Avengers are in an interesting situation: an overpowered, green-skinned Redhead has let herself into the Tower and now wants to stay as a member! Will the long-lost (VERY lost) daughter of Miss Martian and Superboy learn to use her amazing powers for good instead of survival or her own amusement? Or, will she go Darkseid?


**** Disclaimer: this is mostly based off of the Avengers Assemble TV show, and takes place right after the Season 1 finale. I own nothing, except Lori Lye who is an original character. And, yes, I know she's OP. ****

 **Proofread by Golden Oak**

* * *

Lori Lye blinked her eyes in the warm morning sun. Today was the day. She could feel it. Today was the day she was going to join the Avengers. Lori yawned, clacking her beak as she stood up and flapped her wings. She looked down at the already busy New York City street from her perch on a skyscraper window ledge. Already the people of the Big Apple were moving on with their lives after the attack by the 'Cosmic' Red Skull. And so were the Avengers. While there had not yet been a threat worthy of their combined attention, the seven superheros were being especially careful to remain within easy 'assembling' distance of the Tower and each other. Though no one knew that, no one but Lori. She had been watching them carefully for the last several months – sometimes as an animal, sometimes as a human bystander, but most often as a peregrine falcon. That form, her favorite and current one, was ideal for quickly moving about the city. It was fast, strong, and just common enough that none of them had ever suspected her. And today she was going to reveal herself. Lori hopped nervously on the ledge for a few seconds before launching herself off into the air. It had not been an easy decision for her, to trust other humans enough to even talk to them much less work with them, but she was confident that these humans would be different. They had to be. Lori was tired of the solitude. Twenty years without talking to anyone was a long time for anybody, even someone who seemed to age at a quarter of the rate of anyone else. A hungry hollow in her belly distracted Lori from her nervous, and lonely, thoughts. She needed to eat. Besides, it was only six am. The only ones up would be Captain America and Black Widow, and the rest would not be amused by her showing up so early.

* * *

Sam, aka Falcon, woke with a start when his alarm went off at 6:30 am. Muttering something about dreams and alarms, he switched it off and rolled out of bed. Slipping on some workout clothes, he made his way through the Avengers Tower to the impressive weight room where Tony was waiting for him. Tony had finally decided that he needed to bulk up a little, but he couldn't keep up with Steve's dawn runs and merciless boot camp workouts no matter how hard he tried. The alternative was to workout with Sam, the youngest and arguably most normal member of the team. So far, it had been working out well for both of them. Sam didn't need to wake up really early to have Cap spot for him, and Tony had a workout partner he could almost keep up with. Plus, they could talk about their latest projects to pass the time. Today was no exception. After an hour long workout, the pair made their way to the main kitchen for some breakfast, still discussing a new upgrade for the Redwing armor. Cap was already there, making pancakes that the Hulk was eating with gusto. Sam and Tony helped themselves as well, never pausing their conversation.

"No way, Sam. The portable shield generator isn't ready for field testing yet."

"Oh, come on Mr. Stark. The latest tests show that the Redwing armor has more than enough juice to power it."

"True, but we haven't found a way to keep the wave frequencies stable yet."

"The sonar guidance system could be adapted to help modulate that. We'd only need to –"

"Hey, no geek-speak before coffee", Hawkeye grumbled, rudely pushing between them as he weaved his way to the coffee machine.

"Morning, Barton", Cap said with a welcoming smile, "Do you want to try some of my pancakes? So far, they've been a hit."

Clint uttered a noncommittal grunt while he fumbled around for his preferred mug. He really wasn't a morning person, and only got up at 8 so no one could tease him about sleeping in longer than Thor. Tony and Sam shared a look before they both grabbed their plates and went out to the lounge area to eat. Natasha was already there watching the news. She waved at them as they settled down on one of the other couches turned toward the TV.

"So what's going on in the world today", Tony asked.

"Oh, the usual", Black Widow replied, "Things could be better, but they could be a whole lot worse, too. No sign of the Cabal or any other thing that might require our attention today."

"Too bad", Tony mumbled through a bite of pancake, "It's starting to get too quiet around here. Isn't that right Sam." When Tony didn't get an answer, he looked over that the 17-year-old and poked him with his fork. "Sam?"

Sam, who had been looking out the window at the balcony, turned back to his mentor with a start. "Oh, what? Sorry, I wasn't listening."

"I said – ", Tony began, but Natasha cut him off.

"Is something wrong Sam?"

Sam looked back out the window. "I don't know, maybe. How long has that falcon been sitting on the rail?" The other two heros looked outside and finally noticed the small female peregrine falcon watching them. It wasn't that weird to see a falcon outside the Tower, it made a good vantage point for them, but generally they were more interested in the city than the superheros.

Natasha rubbed her chin. "I'm not sure, she was there when I came in." She observed the bird a little longer. "She looks like she's waiting for something."

"Yeah, but what?" Sam got up and walked to the balcony door, the falcon watching him intently.

"Hey, bird-whisperer" Tony called as Sam started to open the outer door, "if you let that thing in here and it makes a mess, it's coming out of your allowance." Sam looked back to give a smart retort as he held the door open, but it was too late. As soon as his back was turned, the falcon zipped inside and flew behind the couch, hovering for a few moments before it seemed to turn into a moving green goo.

"Don't worry, Iron man, I'm house broken", a female voice said as the goo solidified. Standing where the falcon had been just a moment before was a green-skinned, red haired teenage girl. As they stared at her, she shifted her weight nervously and crossed her arms. "Aren't you going to say anything?"

The three just continued to stare at her, they'd never encountered something like her and weren't actually sure how to respond. Sam looked from the newcomer to Hawkeye as he entered the room, now a little more awake. When he saw the girl, he gave a low whistle. From Clint's perspective, she looked like a normal human being, the black leather jacket she wore covering up her arms and her jeans hiding her legs.

"Who's our visitor?", Clint asked as he sidled up beside her, extending one hand in greeting. "Hi, I'm Hawk- What the!" When the girl had turned to return his greeting, Clint finally got a good look at her and pulled back in surprise. "What is that thing?!"

The girl scowled at him and put her hands on her hips, her ruby eyes flashing. "This 'thing' has a name, you know. I'm Lori Lye, and I've come to join the Avengers."

Tony finally found his voice. "Hold up. That's not how it works, sweetheart." He stood up and faced her, the couch between them. "You don't come ask us to join, we ask _you_." Tony turned and started walking around the couch toward her as he continued. "Being green and able to turn into a falcon is cool and all, but we already have two bird-themed members." He stopped beside her and put his arm around her shoulders. She was nearly as tall as he was. "So, nice try, but I just don't think you'd be a good fit."

Lori pushed his arm off her shoulder and took half a step back in an attempt to reestablish her personal space. "But that's not all I can do." She raised her hand and Tony felt a strange tingling sensation as he began to lift off the ground. He did a flip as he attempted to escape her grasp, his arms flailing. "You need me, Mr. Stark. How often would telekinesis come in handy?"

Tony looked like he might say something, but right then Thor and Cap walked in. "What is this? Unhand him, witch!", Thor thundered as he threw Mjolnir, now constantly at his side, directly at the girl. She turned toward him and brought her other arm up in a defensive block, hitting the hammer and sending it crashing through the far wall. With her attention on Thor, Hawkeye grabbed her from behind, wrapping his arms around hers in an attempt to pin her. The girl gave him a very unimpressed sideways glance before she set Tony down and flew herself, and Clint, up almost to the peak of the vaulted, two story ceiling. Clint glanced down and tightened his grip, just to make sure he didn't fall off.

"I'm not here to hurt you! Any of you!", the girl nearly shouted, "I'm here to join you!"

"I know, Lorelei." Sam had run up to the indoor balcony and was calmly talking up at her, trying to keep the situation from spiraling out of control. Unlike Hawkeye, Sam had immediately recognized that anyone who could backhand Mjolnir had to poses super strength on or near the same level as Thor, the Thing, and the Hulk. That meant that only one of those three, or possibly Cap or Natasha, stood a chance against her. But, the added abilities of shape-shifting, flight, and telekinesis meant that, if she fought smart, she could probably defeat all of the Avengers. "Why don't you let Hawkeye down and we'll talk about it, ok?"

There was a tense moment as Lori considered him, seeming to weigh his words. Finally, she nodded. Gripping one of Hawkeye's wrists, she pulled him off of her back and let go, slowly lowering him to the floor with her telekinesis. As he kissed the floor in relief, she floated over and perched on the railing next to Sam. "Alright. And my name is Lori...Lye, but Lorelei works too."

As Sam was considering the next thing he wanted to say, Hulk walked in on the scene. He took Clint kissing the floor, Tony sitting on the floor, and a new hole in the wall in classic Hulk style. "What happen here?" he asked before following everyone's gaze up to the second floor. "And who green girl?"

"That's Lori Lye, and he wants to be our newest member", Natasha answered dryly. "So far, she's demonstrated that she can shape-shift, fly, use telekinesis, and is super strong."

"But what she hasn't demonstrated", Cap cut in, walking to the center of the room and crossing his arms, "is if she really has what it takes to be an Avenger."

Lori looked at Cap, and then at the rest of the Avengers. They all had the same 'you-are-not-off-to-a-good-start' look. Oh, yeah, proving herself was going to be a piece of cake. Not.


End file.
